Sharks boss White has a dig at Tahs boss Cheika

Sharks Director of Rugby Jake White thanked Michael Cheika for helping to inspire his team after their 32-10 Super Rugby win over the Waratahs.

White said that in the run up to the match Cheika had promised that the Waratahs would go "toe-to-toe" with the Sharks

"We had to front up today, they are very abrasive, they've got big, strong ball-runners, they bashed the Reds, so we knew we would have to front up," he told the Sydney Morning Herald.

"There had been a lot of talk in the media about (going) toe to toe and intensity and aggression, so I suppose I must thank Mike (Cheika) for making my team talk easier, I just put it all on the board."

When White was asked about his take on the penalty count which favoured the Sharks 19-9 the Sharks boss brought up an incident in Canberra three weeks ago when Cheika accidentally shattered a pane of glass when he pushed open the door at the end of the match.

"I just want to see if our coaches' box is still alright, because I have to get (chief executive John Smit) to get some insurance for it," White said.

"Hopefully it's not too damaged."

Chieka suggested that the match was "tight" despite the final score and was tilted massively by a lopsided penalty count.

"It was only two tries to one in the end, it was not like we were chasing tries everywhere," he said.

"It was a tight game in many aspects and we finally got a try in the end...".

When that assessment was put to White, he sarcastically said, "Whatever Michael Cheika says, we believe, don't we".